It is known that leashes for pets, typically for dogs but also for other animals, are also made in the retractable form to allow variations in the distance between the animal and its owner and to allow absorption of the stresses and strains caused by the dog, permitting the dog to move away from its owner up to the maximum established distance, which is the maximum length of the cord completely unwound.
It is also known that retractable leashes generally consist of a casing made from plastic material and provided with a grip, inside which is a winding device which makes it possible to adjust the length of the cord, releasing it or retracting it according to requirements by means of the relative control pushbuttons.
The problem that occurs with traditional retractable leashes concerns the fact that the dog is often able to generate a very strong pulling force, as a result of a jerk caused for example by the approach of another dog. This force is sometimes greater than the dog's own weight and can cause the casing of the leash to slip from the owner's hand.
The leash casing can thus fall to the ground or knock against other obstacles, becoming damaged or even completely breaking, making the leash useless. The leash casing is generally damaged at the front, where the cord exit hole is foreseen.
In short, the problem that the protective shell according to the invention wishes to solve springs from the requirement on one hand to be able to protect the leash casing from the possibility of damage if dropped or knocked against something and on the other hand to be able to use an attractive and interchangeable cover according to fashion tastes.
The German utility model DE 20000789 U1 describes a pocket-shaped container designed to enclose a retractable leash, wherein this container is connected to a strap used to fix the container to the body of a person so that a pet can be walked while leaving the hands free.
The German utility model DE 20318127 U1 describes a pocket or holster-shaped container to be connected to the body of a user with a strap, the container being designed to enclose a retractable leash.
The German utility model DE 202007002784 U1 describes a pocket-shaped container designed to enclose a retractable leash, and provided with additional pockets designed to hold a series of accessories.
The containers described in the three German utility models described above provide very limited protection of the retractable leash casing. There is, in fact, a concrete possibility that, as a result of a jerk due to a movement of the dog, the leash casing can slip out of the pocket or holster-shaped container and that the leash, without any protection, can fall to the ground or suffer knocks that could irreparably damage the casing.